Within the hushed atmosphere of a hotel bar near London's Royal Ballet, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is effortlessly straight-backed, his limbs muscular beneath a plain tee. On stage, dancers can seem as powerful deities, yet often offstage they are small. This is not true for Ball, whose height is part of his popularity for princely roles and pas de deux work. With delicate traits and piercing eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
A Seamless Rise to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the peak of a career that has progressed seamlessly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced little ridicule for his early interest in ballet. Entering the Royal Ballet School at 11, he graduated directly into the company and was advanced annually, reaching the top rank of principal in 2018. He has relished taking on meaty characters, particularly the emotional angst found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your breath is short, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
Ball's next starring role is in a talk, in an "In Conversation" series aiming to offer intimate insights into a dancer's art. He will guide the crowd through a role, demonstrating his cognitive process during execution. Even in lighter works, the challenge is significant. "Don Quixote is one of the most demanding technically," he states.
The Mental Game and Post-Performance Emotions
How does he feel following a performance, when he has succeeded? "It feels pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to squeeze all the emotion out of it, and get lost in the role, frequently I do feel embarrassed afterwards. After an intense role I'm always like: God, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. But a dance maker previously remarked on a "sense of suffering in him." Does this exist? "I am very energetic in general, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that negativity has been an instigator for good change."
Early Drivers and Creative Inspirations
His determination stemmed from youthful setbacks. Not excelling in contests at school made him "driven!" This became motivation to prove he could succeed. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit obsessive," he remembers.
The next endeavor is creating his own dance works. In his view, "organic movement has value." "Challenging the rules is interesting, but just pretending that they’re not a thing any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He aims his work to be filled with substance, drawing inspiration from books, compositions, and art.
Intimate Performance and Private Dynamic
He additionally is interested in staging dance in more intimate spaces. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past show. "You’re so near to the viewers. I felt as if they were realizing: 'That’s a human, and they’re perspiring.'"
Ball has made duets with his partner, fellow lead dancer Mayara Magri. The level of faith between them is evident. "We tried it out on the beach first," he says of a daring lift. "It was like Dirty Dancing." The couple are not typically matched on stage at their main theater, which is perhaps beneficial. "We’re both quite strong-willed people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "But I feel like we’re each other’s favorite cheerleader."
On Social Media and Physical Perception
On Instagram, followers can see videos from his dance films and photos that highlight a athletic physique. Does he mind that the response can be a bit objectifying? Not particularly. "The body is just what we work with, so I don’t feel very protective about it," he states. He compares it to viewing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be seen on multiple levels.
Ball describes his early self as "eager for success." Has it met his expectations? "I feel very aware of how life is a different reality to the aspirations you had as a young person," he muses. He probably has another decade of dancing ahead. "I guess in the future, I want to be a bit more gentle with myself."
